No policy on GAA club names

GAA president Liam O’Neill has said the body has no policy on the naming of new clubs.

He was speaking in the wake of renewed criticism from unionist quarters in the North about clubs named after republicans.

Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister slammed GAA pundit Joe Brolly after he defended the title of the Kevin Lynch’s Hurling Club in Dungiven, Co Derry — named after the 1981 INLA hunger striker.

The attack came after First Minister Peter Robinson praised the GAA’s role in the peace process last week.

Mr O’Neill said: “Isn’t it ironic that as a result of praise we got that that came about? It wasn’t an issue a couple of weeks ago but it is today. That’s a very sensitive area but there are far less than you might think that are called after whatever you might want to call them, patriots or whatever. There are far less than you would imagine.”

He said: “At the moment we don’t have a policy.”